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How do you use externally defined materials in a URDF.Xacro file?

asked 2015-04-26 17:33:43 -0500

Cerin gravatar image

How do you apply a material definition located in an external udrf.xacro file?

I have a materials.urdf.xacro file like:

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<robot>
  <material name="black">
    <color rgba="0.0 0.0 0.0 1.0"/>
  </material>

  <material name="blue">
    <color rgba="0.0 0.0 0.8 1.0"/>
  </material>

  <material name="green">
    <color rgba="0.0 0.8 0.0 1.0"/>
  </material>

  <material name="gray">
    <color rgba="0.7 0.7 0.7 1.0"/>
  </material>

  <material name="darkgray">
    <color rgba="0.3 0.3 0.3 1.0"/>
  </material>

  <material name="red">
    <color rgba="0.8 0.0 0.0 1.0"/>
  </material>

  <material name="white">
    <color rgba="1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0"/>
  </material>

  <material name="yellow">
    <color rgba="0.8 0.8 0.0 1.0"/>
  </material>
</robot>

and I'm trying to include and use these materials like:

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<robot name="myrobot"
    xmlns:xacro="http://www.ros.org/wiki/xacro">
    <xacro:include filename="$(find myrobot_description)/urdf/materials.urdf.xacro" />
    <link name="torso">
        <visual>
            <geometry>
                <box size="1 1 1" />
            </geometry>
            <material name="red"/>
        </visual>
        <xacro:default_inertial mass="1"/>
    </link>
</robot>

However, when I run:

roslaunch urdf_tutorial xacrodisplay.launch model:='$(find myrobot_description)/urdf/myrobot.urdf.xacro'

Rviz renders the box as white and not red. Why is that?

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2 Answers

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answered 2015-04-26 18:30:53 -0500

130s gravatar image

updated 2015-04-26 18:39:26 -0500

From the tutorial you see:

If a TF frame does not exist for a given URDF link, then it will be placed at the origin in white.

In your case, changing link name from "torso" to "base_link" should do the work.

UPDATE: @DLu is right. Although torso might not be available in the fixed frame pulldown menu, you can manually type in torso.

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Comments

Unfortunately, that tutorial never explains what a "TF frame" is, so that note doesn't help.

Cerin gravatar image Cerin  ( 2015-04-26 21:32:35 -0500 )edit

Although I don't understand why, this fixes it. I wish there was a more intuitive solution though.

Cerin gravatar image Cerin  ( 2015-04-26 21:44:09 -0500 )edit

Might be a good call: URDF tutorial requires you to have finished TF tutorials. I opened a ticket.

130s gravatar image 130s  ( 2015-04-27 02:51:45 -0500 )edit
0

answered 2015-04-26 18:24:56 -0500

DLu gravatar image

Set the base frame of rviz to be torso

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Comments

I don't understand. What code would I change to do that? Or are you suggesting I'll have to manually set some GUI widget every time I load a model?

Cerin gravatar image Cerin  ( 2015-04-26 21:33:46 -0500 )edit

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Asked: 2015-04-26 17:33:43 -0500

Seen: 5,952 times

Last updated: Apr 26 '15